Month in Review - 21.5 Months

Almost two years old! Where is the time going?

After that first birthday, time FLIES. Not even kidding. This was the fastest year YET. I realized I have NO updates for Jackson's 21st month... So here we go!

Weight: A whopping 26 lbs!

Favorites: Jumping everywhere, bunnies, buses, trucks, loves reading books, LOVES his aunts and uncles and both Kacey dogs and grandparents (loves looking at their photos and pointing them out everyday), loves the water, loves racing cars on the kitchen floor, black olives, getting my parent's slippers out when they are visiting (and mine when we get home every day), going to church, driving by any church, his "Jesus" book, helping with laundry and cooking and vacuuming, kissing us if we stub our toe or hurt something, flushing the potty, stroking his pinkie-finger when he's sucking on his two fingers, naps (he will tell us when it's time..."NAP! NAP!"), screaming on top of his lungs if he is told "no" or when he has to do something he doesn't want to...

Dislikes: Getting snow on his gloves, this motorcycle race car thing my aunt gave him (Must be too loud). When mommy is trying to cook and isn't giving Jackson all her attention. The cold weather. Learning patience. When mommy gets on the phone. When mommy tries to do anything but play with him... Oh boy.

Potty Training: He was doing great for a couple weeks with pooping in the toilet. Then he stopped. But started again. It's hit or miss. We're just going with it. No pressure!

It's been a fun month even in the arctic blast!! Below are photos in no particular order from the months of January and February 2014!

I was able to get a total workout here! We went for a long sled ride! Trying to get out as much as possible but it's SO hard when it's SO COLD!!!

Obsession with bunnies. Peek a boo!

Obsession with his lawn mower. He is ready for GREEN! ME TOO!

Hanging out with his Uncle Mike who is at the Sochi Olympics right now! Lucky duck!

One day it hit CLOSE to 40 degrees! YES! We were OUTSIDE for that!!!

Enjoyed homemade banana ice cream with Nutella. Naughty but YUM!

Papa MIGHT have left his Cheetos behind... 

Every 1st and 3rd Saturday I have put together Toddler TOT SPOT at my church! SO MUCH FUN! Lots of space to run around in and toys to play with. Jackson loves. 

Fixing mom something real tasty in his kitchen!

Yeah, you read that right. -19. SO SO SO COLD.

Such a HAM

Loves putting on mommy's shoes

We've gone swimming a couple times. Jackson LOVES, but he MIGHT love the shower more...  Yes, that's my bikini in the drain. Whatever. You do whatever works. 

Major obsession with Wheels on the Bus. MAJOR. 

Hit up the park on that 40 degree day!

I try to clean and Jackson loves playing with all the stuff I find and make use of it. Look at those baby browns!

Loves reading books!

My sweet, sweet boy! Love this little FLIRT.

My mom bought Jackson a book that recorded her voice. He has to read this book at least twice a night. He gives the "Grandma Bunny" a kiss on the last page. SO SWEET. 

On top of the world! Again...mom cleaning again and Jackson makes use of it all!

Went to the Wild Rumpus book store. Lots of animals hanging out. Jackson was in heaven. He kissed ALL the kitties. 

Bonding with dad. 

Looked so old to me here!!!

Having fun on our special Fridays!

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TOT SPOT fun!

Jumping on dad!!!

More reading!

Aunt Kelly stopped by at day care! Jackson LOVED. Same with the other kids!

Should we be worried? Jackson sucks his two fingers and strokes his pinkie. Now he sticks objects on his pinkie... 

Picking out books at the Wild Rumpus!

Sometimes they end up on the wrong feet but he's getting really good at putting his shoes on! Boy, will he get FRUSTRATED when he can't get them on right though!

We hit up a local gymnastics place for open gym some Fridays. SO MUCH FUN!!!!!

Have a great month!!!

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100,000 Blog Views!!

Over 100,000 views on my blog! WOOT!

Just wanted to take a moment to celebrate on my blog today! Thanks for helping me hit over 100,000 views!!!

I started this blog as a way to share my journey and experiences in hopes of becoming a published author some day. I know that dream WILL COME TRUE eventually. It will. Then I started sharing my worldly adventures as well as how I maintain a healthy lifestyle. I'm extremely passionate about health, fitness and nutrition. YOUR HEALTH IS SO IMPORTANT. It means EVERYTHING.

And THEN I became a mom. Woweee!!! What was that!??!?!

I wanted this blog to be VERY real and honest and raw. Perhaps I share "too much" at times but I'm OK with it. I have that little voice inside my head that says..."nah, maybe you shouldn't go there." I try to listen to that as I write. This blog has been SO therapeutic for me. I LOVE IT. I love my followers. I love all of you who take the time to stop by and check in. THANK YOU.

I promise to continue to be real, honest and ME!!

With that said, is there anything you wish you could see more of?

I can promise you that there will be a lot more fun, crazy to come! Thanks for letting me keep it real!

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Three Tests Down - All Positive (Day 28)

Day 28 - February 10

So I have taken THREE pregnancy tests now (two on Day 24 and one on Day 26). 

Two of them were Dollar Store purchases. Did I mention I had to get real creative with how I peed in a cup? I didn’t realize these Dollar store tests made you do that. Oops. But we’re talking a dollar here! Score.

All three tests have had that second FADED line. I will take one tomorrow (Day 29) to confirm. BUT I (the crazy organized part of me) already called the doctor and scheduled our appointment even though Karl asked me if I’m sure.

Well…I’m SURE those tests don’t lie. There is no such thing as a false positive. You either have Hcg in you or you don’t. Pretty sure I do.

We’re both in denial a little bit. Excited but nervous. SCARED.  Karl said it’s because he already knows what to expect this time around. Maybe that’s what it is??

I just feel bad because I have been VERY ANXIOUS. And I hope I’m not hurting this sweet little babe with all my worries. Jackson is totally picking up on me right now. So I feel bad about that too. This house stuff is making me CRAZY.  I’m waking up at 1 and then 2 and then 4 for good thinking and thinking. I just want everything to go really well and for us to make the RIGHT decision. I hate feeling rushed. I don’t know if I feel rushed or straight up SCARED. Change is SO scary and we’re about to face two HUGE changes.

I will say about 18 HUGE garbage bags went out for donation from our house in two truckloads, so moving shouldn’t be AS tough. It will be, but at least I know where things are. Well…except for in the man cave and the garage. Oh boy. I’m scared.

I’m thinking I’ll need newer clothes anyway since Jackson was born in the spring and I didn’t need any summer maternity clothes. This time around I will. Will I really want to wear a sweater in July? I think not.  I remember how hot I was all the time.

Our water heater broke on Friday too so there was that throwing me into an anxiety whirlwind. Really…this stuff isn’t THAT BAD. I need to CHILL OUT.  Karl fixed it all up. I love that about him. Mr. Fix It. Total TURN ON!

And go figure I stored ALL my maternity clothes away and then BAM. I swear the minute you LET GO of ANY situation, AMAZING happens. That to me is GOD. Reminding us, I am here!!! Do not FEAR. I am WITH YOU. ALWAYS! Let me do MY WORK.

DUH, Christie.

Secondly, my dad got sick with a fever over the weekend so I was worried about that. Why was he sick? Was it his heart? Would he be OK? What REALLY is going on back home? BUT, it sounded like a quick bug. He’s good now. He showed me and Jackson his HUGE scar across his chest. Jackson of course yelled, “OWIE!!!” My poor dad. He is doing REALLY GREAT though. Superstar!!!

I also weighed myself. I am TWO pounds away from my wedding weight. TWO. WHAT!??!?! I’m not trying at ALL. I’m not working out extra. I’m not eating any better. I’m just ALWAYS GOING. ALWAYS. Chasing a toddler is a crazy calorie burn.

But I looked tired and old. Yum. 

So yeah, I’m all over the place with my thoughts and emotions. And just in case this little babe is reading this. I AM VERY EXCITED FOR YOU. I AM. Being a mommy is scary because we want to give you THE WORLD. THE BEST OF US.  ALL THE TIME.

I freaked out with your brother too (way more) and then I realized I could do this. I know God is telling me, “You’ve got this! Go MOM!!!” 

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TWO LINES!!!!!! Here We Go Again!!!

Day 24 (February 6, 2014)

Well. Well. Well. Two lines this morning!!!!!!!!!!!!

HERE WE GO AGAIN!!!!!!!!

Ok, one very noticeable line and one faint line – so faint Karl didn’t believe it until I started Googling and showing him that it’s TWO lines and there really aren’t many false positives. I will take another test in a couple days just to confirm. This does NOT feel real.

Two lines! One SUPER faint but there!!!

ANYWAY, I woke up around 3 AGAIN (I seem to like 3 a.m. lately) and had HORRIBLE heartburn. The only time I EVER get heartburn is when I’m PG. This early into things though?? My eyes popped open when I realized this. But somehow I fell back asleep and was wide awake once again at 5 a.m. thanks to little Jackson talking to himself in his room. SO CUTE. The best was when he was sleep-singing E-I-E-I-O. 

Total heart MELT.

A voice kept telling me to take a test. Would it be a waste? I had a 20-minute argument with myself and actually drifted back to sleep for 2 minutes before my alarm went off.  Go figure. And decided to go take a test. Mind you, two nights before Jackson lifted up my shirt when I was reading a book to him and started patting my belly. Then looked up at me and smiled. Did he already know something!??!

Secondly, I felt like I was getting my period. I usually get grease face and I had grease face going on this week. HOWEVER, I get zitty before my period comes and it was like the zits were there but then would dry up and go away. Weird, I know.  My hair feels thicker too. Already??? I have been eating a lot of avocados and have been using Moroccan oil so I thought it was just diet and product. But yesterday, I was DEAD TIRED at work. And then I was like…either my period is coming SOON or else this is it.

Also, when I was a tornado last Friday and purged our house to pieces, I could barely do a THING that next day. That’s not me. I can usually go and go and go. My energy was zapped.

ANOTHER THING, I had to lift a heavy box at work (no bigs for me) and I was TOTALLY OUT OF BREATH by the time I walked up the stairs. This normally does NOT happen.  I also ran to my car and back and was out of breath. I know I haven’t been going to the gym as much but I was really out of breath.

So I peed this morning and the lines took a little while. With Jackson it was BAM, immediate. BUT, I know I’m only day 24. With Jackson I was day 29. Anyway, I saw the faded line. My mouth got REAL dry. Then the stick started shaking. I was like… ”Oh dear. This is happening”.

Sure enough…two lines. One was still VERY faint.

Just like I did when I found out I was PG with Jackson, I shuffled out to the bed and stared at Karl all snuggled up like an ESKIMO (we found out in balmy August with Jackson. We’re currently in the arctic vortex right now….STILL). His eyes opened.

Told Karl at 6:04 a.m. he's going to be a dad again!!!

Karl: “What?”

Me: “Sooooo, I think you’re going to be a dad again.”

Karl: Eyes bulge. Then smiles. “What? Really?”

Me: “The line is VERY faint but there are two lines.”

Karl: “Wellll, then I don’t think so if it’s faint…”

Me: “Those things don’t lie. I see two lines.”

I bring the test out. And turn the light on.

Karl: “I can barely see it!”

Me: “It’s THERE!”

I proceed to Google and find out that it is VERY rare to get a false positive. When you see two lines, faint or not, you are pregnant. I read him everything I can find.

He pats my belly and we hug for a long time and I feel SO MUCH LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!

Then we both look at each other…. “Here we go again!”

Karl puts his hand out to stop me…”Just, just. Don’t get all crazy here.”

He knows me TOO WELL. J My brain is already going. When is the baby due? (OK, already looked that up when we started trying. OCTOBER!!!!!!!!! Jackson will be exactly 2.5 years.) Do we need to move now? What about daycare? Can we afford? Will Karl finish that paper? Must get house ready now!!! My brain is in OVERDRIVE.

But I smile at Karl and his look of concern and shut my brain off and I totally feel like this is NOT real. I make a mental note to pick up a few tests and try again over my lunch break and then maybe tomorrow and the next day.

HERE WE GO AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Go Time - Round II

Back at it

Hello. Hello. So back to trying for Baby #2. I decided to take the “let’s-not-freak-out-this-time-around-and-just-go-with-it” approach. Totally better. Ahhh. Jealous of you people who are wired this way from the get go.

Instead, I decided to put my ‘psycho self’ into house projects like 'Purging 101'. Right now the entire man cave basement is packed with of garbage bags full of stuff we no longer need or use. It’s pretty crazy. All I could think about is shipping it over to Peru to the families I visited over there who have NOTHING but one mattress for 5 kids. Ugh. (They are totally happy though.) And here I am with 10 yellow shirts. Hello. Not anymore. I am down to TWO white shirts. NO yellow. And well, who cares. Honestly, “stuff” does NOT make one happier in the end. I think it suffocates, actually.  

Side note: Think of how much money we could have saved if we didn’t buy this stuff...  

The more Karl and I look at houses, the more I realize I LOVE the houses with zero to NO clutter. And I’m going to get our house there. It’s just tough because we have NO storage. But it’s OK. I’m figuring out a system. Every time, I ask myself…. “Hello, object. Do I want to move you when it comes to moving time? Are you worth it to me? Have I’ve gotten much use out of you?”

Most of the time the answer is “NO”.

I have container basket things shipping to us this week! And Jackson has made homes out of all the Rubbermaids. Super fun. It is VERY challenging trying to keep him busy and in ONE room so I can supervise all the while cleaning and purging. It’s almost impossible. BUT, I’m trying to tell myself “baby steps”. Sooner than later I’ll get to a point where I’ll take a deep breath and know I did the best I could and be very happy with the results. We’re making some people over at Lupus very happy…and the VETS. We’re having TWO trucks come by… We don’t want to scare the neighbors with our hoard.

Oh, and I’m bringing stuff IN. My awesome friend Jenna hooked us UP with baby clothes!!! She has three kids – two girls and one boy. She found a bunch of girls' clothes tucked in the back of her storage only her first born wore because she didn’t realize she had tucked it away. I don’t think we’ll find out what we’re having again, so I’ll just have to hang on to these! Thanks Jenna! What a gem!!!

Look at all these AWESOME baby clothes!!!!!! JENNA RULES!!!

I separated them all out and washed all the neutral clothes and put them together for baby #2 and am setting all the pink stuff aside just in case. Remember… I’m in “chill” mode. Whatever happens….happens!

I’m having a lot of fun looking at houses. I think Karl might be too. It is exhausting and we’d never be able to do as well if Karl’s parents didn’t watch Jackson. We found two more that we LOVE. The first one really stole our hearts. The minute we walked in I thought it felt homey. We just wish there were a few minor upgrades, but maybe we can do those things down the road. Would not need to do immediately. We just need to sit down and think about finances. That’s not always fun, but it’s healthy. I feel like I’m cleaning out my entire body lately just by getting organized. So strange. I feel lighter. Have I mentioned that before?

So that’s where we are at. We’ll see what a week will bring. Maybe our lives will change forever once again. Again, not thinking about it. Not one bit. Did I mention I had a dream we had twins? Ok…enough for now. Shush. 

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Is our Perfect Home Out There?

House Hunting Part I

I know I need to do a monthly recap. This is more of a smorgasbord of thoughts. I plan on doing a recap once I get all the million pics off my cell phone. But just so you know, Jackson doesn't quite run everywhere anymore. He jumps. It’s funny. And he’s obsessed with bunnies. And The Wheels on the Bus videos. And he’s using the potty. I’m not going to write much about that because I’m scared to jinx things and I can’t believe this is happening…

Isn’t this a phase??  Don’t boys take longer?

Enjoying a healthy smoothie

I think Jackson is on his 15^th haircut too. It helps when grandma cuts hair for a living!!!

We started looking at houses. Wow. Exhausting!!! Even more when you’re looking during the arctic blast and blizzard. [Insert frozen face.]  Why not move to Arizona?

We didn’t expect to find a house during our first run through. Problem is the location. It’s quite the distance outside The Cities. It’s like Roscoe back in the 80s (the town in Illinois I grew up in). Very country. Very little to do – no gas stations for miles away. BUT, that’s something Karl and I were hoping for in a weird way.

Isn't she pretty?

Houses are ON TOP of each other otherwise, unless we can fork over half a million or buy a house that was built over 30+ years ago and requires quite a bit of work. We’ve been living in a town home where we share walls with the neighbors and there is ZERO yard. We want SOME land. We want a garden. We want a yard Jackson can play in. We’re over our neighbors looking into our home.

Yet, we realize that our townhome IS REALLY nice. I bought it brand new and I have taken good care of it. I didn't realize how well until we started walking through houses younger than ours and noticing the destruction. And this is probably why we’ve subconsciously hung on to our townhome for so long. That, and we wanted to wait as long as possible to sell so we could get SOMETHING for it.

In the meantime I cleaned out our master bedroom last weekend. NINE garbage bags FULL of stuff. NINE. I have my work cut out for me. It’s PURGE TIME.

Just the start of PURGE FEST

Anyway, we found a house for a GREAT price (bank owned). The view is awesome. But the house would require a little work. Do we have time for repair work?? Can we fork over money for new appliances, carpet and paint from the get go? We can barely find time to keep up with our own place.

The kitchen is huge. There are custom closets. An unfinished walkout basement. A wonderful deck. A slop sink and a laundry area! But I’ve heard the commute (though same miles I drive now) isn’t the best. What to do? What to do?

I now see how this is going to be a little more difficult than I thought. I’m going to have to compromise some wants, aren't I?

I keep thinking something awesome will fall in our lap like it did for my brother and sister-in-law…

Also, my dad went in for his open-heart surgery and I can report he is AWAKE and gave us all thumbs up (via a text message my mom sent)! Can you tell I was trying to keep my mind busy with house stuff? I couldn’t stand the thought of my dad's chest getting ripped open.

Doctors went in and discovered the quarter-sized hole in his heart was even BIGGER than that. They also replaced his mitral valve with a pig valve. My dad looks young for his age, but he’s been breathing heavily and napping multiple times throughout the day. Seemed so odd. He’d walk up three steps and have to stop.

You think a massive hole in your heart might be the reason? BINGO!!! Let’s hope this surgery helps. I pray for a speedy recovery.

This is my reason for living out a healthy lifestyle. I know my family’s heart history. I pay close attention to what goes in my body and the amount of sleep and activity I get every day (sleep varies now that I'm a mom). I know it makes me sound psycho from time to time, but I know what happens when you don’t take care of yourself. Why not start from a young age and establish GOOD habits to carry on forever? Then it doesn’t seem so daunting and overwhelming.

I'm also going to try to blog about my weekly meal plans. Basically I rip out healthy recipes, write out a grocery list, search for coupons and hit up the store ONCE a week. We're good for the week. It's such a HUGE relief knowing what I'm going to make when I get home from work and all ingredients will be there. 

What I need to work on is stress. But I think that rings true with most people! This is why I’m trying to figure out a workout schedule. I feel SO GREAT after working out. But fitting it in is so tough!!! I did get one work out in last week. This cold weather is totally killer. Can’t even step outside for more than 5 minutes without my nose hair icing up on me.

Stay warm out there!

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How to Get a House Ready for the Market

But We Have Too Much Stuff!

I’m in TOTAL organization mode right now. It’s so hard when you have the organization bug and you’re at work more than you are home. Or when you are home, you have a toddler to chase around. BUT, I’m getting things done, closest by closet and room by room.

This all started when our realtor came over to check out our town home a few weeks ago. We’ve been thinking about selling and buying a house with a yard and a basement for Jackson to run wild in! YAY! But after she left, I was so overwhelmed, I froze. I didn’t even know where to start. I even told myself maybe living in a town home forever wouldn’t be a bad thing. 

Bottom line: we have an incredible amount of stuff.

I think both Karl and I get emotionally attached to “things”, which makes it harder to toss or donate. I’m getting better about it though. “It’s just STUFF,” I tell myself. “You can’t take it with you.” 

Right?

I’ve been reading a really great book, “It’s All Too Much.” The author suggests walking into each room and visualizing the purpose of that room, and then going from there.

It’s WORKING.

What happened was I bought my town home when I was 23. It was VERY empty then, but by 30 I had met Karl, we had multiple wedding showers, we were married, then sold his townhome and acquired all his stuff AND then had our son with multiple baby showers. We have a LOT of STUFF.

The plan is to sell. We just haven’t decided when. However, in the meantime, I’m downsizing room by room to get a head start. I can’t tell you how much BETTER I feel when I purge and I walk into a room that is clearly organized. I can breathe easier.  Ahhhhh. I don’t feel so overwhelmed by our stuff.

The big problem with our town home is there is ZERO storage, other than closets and our garage. Karl built me some awesome shelves in the garage when we were dating that helped a ton but they are filled to the top. I walk by and notice there are things on the shelves that we NEVER use so I think more storage space can be made.

The second issue is we plan on expanding our family (this part is exciting but it creates a predicament). We can’t get rid of any baby stuff unless we want to buy all new stuff and that just seems crazy. Baby stuff takes up a ton of space. It’s trying to find storage for this stuff but still allow our home to be sellable.

The biggest problem: do we really want to rent a storage shed for several months? To me, if you have to use a storage facility, then you have way too much stuff. If we’re storing it, then why do we need it? Get where I’m going here? 

The book I’m reading was saying how The Container Store is growing by 30% every single year and the storage business is a billion dollar business. I believe it. Americans have way too much stuff and WE are TOTALLY part of the problem!!

Below are a few images I would LOVE to follow to help me along: 

Love this boot idea since mine are all over the floor

We have all our stuff jammed everywhere. This is an excellent idea!

We need some sort of shoe rack in our garage or somewhere! Our shoe rack now is in front of the closet that houses our furnace and water softener. What a mess when we have to get in there. This would work slick!

Every time I cook I get stressed because our spice cabinet is a MESS. This would TOTALLY HELP!

Any advice on the best way to tackle getting a house ready for the market without overwhelming myself too much? 

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